Tempest's Homecoming
by Clayton Overstreet
Summary: Tempest Shadow comes to Ponyville to find her place, reconnect with her family, and maybe find love. But it's a lot more complicated than she expected.


I don't own these characters or profit from them. This story is being written just after the movie came out on DVD, so any discrepancies between it and the TV series are unavoidable. Any similarities… would be awesome. Also there may be some spoilers if you have not seen the movie yet.

Tempest's Homecoming

By, Clayton Overstreet

Sometimes the day just never goes the way you expected. Twilight Sparkle was going over Ponyville's taxes with Spike. She and her friends did not actually pay taxes. Princesses Celestia and Luna both insisted that if you saved the world and their lives in particular, then you got to skip out on them. Twilight felt guilty about that and the fact that a portion of the taxes went to her, but it was pointed out that she did a lot of good for Equestria and not only would it be a problem if the filly who usually saved the world was distracted with a job more complicated than being the town librarian, but from a political standpoint it looked bad if a leader was not rich and powerful. There was a reason princesses and kings and the like wore crowns and expensive dresses, threw huge parties, and usually had a lot of employees around the place. In addition while the princesses were intensely magical most ponies (even unicorns) could not make things appear from thin air that easily it would hurt the economy if they could. So it was best if Twilight and the other princess's just paid for things. At least she did not have to account for every cent in Equestria. Celestia and Luna had ponies for that and Cadence and Shining Armor did the Crystal Empire's.

Nobody seemed to mind. The people of Ponyville and the local towns had a closer place to send their bits and having been on the receiving end of both monster attacks and Twilight's friends fighting the monsters, they had no hesitation paying up. The majority of it went to public works anyway and the occasional local festival or charity event. Aside from that Twilight's friends were given stipends for when they had to skip work to solve a friendship problem or save a kingdom from a rampaging villain. Also Spike drew a fee for assisting her. it was all very complicated and Twilight and Spike both did their best to focus on the paperwork instead of the bags of gold waiting to be picked up and sent to the capitol in Canterlot. Later portions would be shipped back to local government offices to pay for roads, garbage collectors, and everything in between.

Twilight was just signing the final sheet when everything went dark. She and Spike looked around and then blinked as the light once again shown through the crystal windows of her castle. "What was that?"

"I don't know," Spike said. "It looked pretty big. Do you want me to check it out while you finish filing the paperwork?"

"I'd rather do it myself," she said uncertainly. Unfortunately her work ethic got in the way. "But I suppose you're right. After all that work I suppose I'd better finish filing these taxes before something shows up and incinerates them while attacking the town."

Spike sighed. "You know adventures are fun every now and then, but remember when we weren't constantly in danger of being attacked by monsters?"

Twilight paused. "Not really, no. but then I recall having to raise a baby dragon…"

Spike snorted. "Ha-ha, very funny." He hopped off his throne and headed for the door. He paused by the piled bags of gold coins, his claws itching to grab them.

"Spike…" Twilight said warningly without turning around.

"I'm going. I'm going."

Twilight smiled and began stacking the paperwork. She finished filing it and waited for Spike to return. He did not arrive in the first hour so she got a book and started reading. She had gotten into the stories of filly detective Prancy Dew, who along with her friends solved mysteries. She was just getting to the end of the case when Spike finally came back. He did not seem to be in a hurry and was sipping on a milkshake. When he saw her reading he just took a seat at the table. The book was short so Twilight finished it, smiling at the contrived ending and the way the author had been saying that chimeras had tusks on their feline head instead of fangs. "Some people need to do research before they write books… so Spike what was that thing?"

"Oh it was just our new pirate… sorry… swashbuckling adventurer friends. They were given one of the Storm King's war balloons as a replacement for the one they lost and just got back from salvaging their treasure and personal belongings from their crashed ship. They were in town dropping off Tempest Shadow and passing out fliers to let people know that if they have an adventure to go on or a treasure to search for they're for hire. I heard that Princess Luna and Celestia have already got them under government contract incase we need a lift in the future."

"Well that will sure come in handy… wait, did you say they dropped off Tempest Shadow?" Her eyes widened.

Spike sipped his drink and nodded. "Yeah, apparently she's from here."

Twilight gasped. "Of course. I should have known when she told that story about being attacked by an Ursa Minor. Did you talk to her?"

"No, by the time I got to where they dropped her off at the far side of town she had walked off. People recognized her of course, but I guess since they saw her hanging with us at the Friendship Festival everyone figured it was all good."

"Do you think she might be coming to see me?"

"Maybe," Spike said. "It's been a few weeks. Dismantling the Storm King's government and putting Queen Nova back in charge, not to mention paying back those pirates for destroying their ship probably took a while."

"I offered to help," Twilight said.

"Yeah, well she said she forgave you, but I'm pretty sure she wanted to hide that magical pearl of theirs before they started diplomatic relations." Twilight blushed. She had tried to steal the pearl that allowed the hippogriffs to transform any pony into any shape they wanted. They had been using it to hide in a secret grotto to avoid the Storm King's armies as sea ponies. When the reclusive creatures had turned down Twilight's pleas for assistance she had tried to take it so she could use its powers to free the enslaved ponies. She had been caught and only the princess Skystar had been interested in helping afterwards. "I think I saw Rainbow Dash flying after them."

Getting up Twilight headed for the door, pausing for a moment to check her reflection in the crystalline surface. She even bared her teeth and ran her tongue over them, making sure there wasn't any oats or carrots stuck in them. "I'll be back in a bit Spike. I'm going to go see if I can find her."

"But Twilight, we're scheduled to—"

Stepping out into the hall Twilight said absently, "That's alright Spike, we can forget about the schedule for today."

She was gone before Spike realized what he had just heard and did a spit take, coughing and choking before he stared after her eyes wide. "Forget the schedule?!" The small dragon felt like he might faint. Twilight was already long gone.

A moment later Starlight Glimmer stuck her head in. "Spike, was that you I heard yelling?"

"Starlight… I… I can't believe it."

Clopping into the room she asked worriedly, "What is it Spike?"

"Twilight just told me… to forget the schedule."

The mare paled. "Oh my gosh… you don't thinks he's been replaced by a changeling do you? Has Chrysalis come to get her revenge on me?"

Spike shrugged. "I don't know... maybe we should follow her and see. I'm sure Twilight would understand."

"You think so?"

"Well… I don't know for certain she'd have a problem with it."

Starlight grinned. "Works for me. If it isn't a changeling I'd certainly want to know what could make Twilight blow off a schedule. What if we get caught?"

"Then I'll just point out the time she spent the day stalking Pinkie Pie, or when the girls followed the Crusaders around… or a dozen other times."

She smiled and said, "Boy this town is a lot of fun."

000

Twilight did manage to trace Tempest's path through town. It began with her landing in an empty pasture near some cows.

000

Earlier

Tempest walked off the gangplank of the blimp/sky ship as the pirates waved goodbye behind her. She nodded back when she hit the ground and they brought the plank back in as the ship began to rise. The captain had said they were heading to the gryphon kingdom. Apparently Rainbow Dash, who had met them in the air on the way into town, had told them that she knew for a fact an ancient golden statue had been dropped into a deep ravine by Griffonstone and had been lost so long before that the gryphons might never know it was missing and might be willing to pay to get it back. A fine first adventure for their new ship.

Looking around at the small town she had once called home Tempest felt her heart sink. Would anyone remember her for anything but her actions as the Storm King's second in command?

Rainbow Dash landed next to her. "Hey Tempest, what brings you here? Come to see Twilight?"

"No, just … thought I'd come home."

"You're from Ponyville? Neat!"

"Wait, why would Princess Twilight be here?"

"Uh, she and Spike live here. So do I. Fluttershy, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and a lot of our other friends."

"I thought you all lived in Canterlot."

Rainbow remembered how surprised she had been to find all four princesses together. "We were all just there for Twilight's first Friendship Festival. Princess Cadence lives in the Crystal Empire in the frozen wastes and Luna is usually out at night. You really got lucky catching all four of them together like you did."

Blushing Tempest looked down. "Yeah… lucky."

Rainbow could see she was worried. "Hey, when you're done catching up with the folks, you should swing by and see everyone. You did save our lives and all. I'm sure everyone would be really happy to see you." She could see that Tempest did not believe that. "Well I'll leave you to it and I'll check in with you later. Have a great day. Also yopu should swing by the Apple's pie stand. Get some cider and a slice of pie in you and you're sure to feel better." In a rainbow flash she was gone.

"Well it's easy to see how she escaped," Tempest said remembering how annoyed she had been when Twilight and her friends had escaped. Her stomach twisted a little into knots of guilt.

Hoofing it into town she did see the stand. A large red horse was running it. She remembered vaguely the huge apple farm at the edge of town. She had not been old enough to even understand that ponies owned it. It was just a bunch of trees. As kids they would play in it… and it had a trail that led into the woods. She paused, remembering the day she had wandered into that cave. The scar over her right eye seemed to itch and sparks flickered from the broken horn on her forehead. Gritting her teeth she decided to buy a slice of pie and a drink.

The pony at the stand was thankfully one of few words, though she thought she might have seen recognition. She had shed her armor and really only a handful of the ponies at the festival had gotten a good look at her, but since this guy was probably related to Applejack he probably knew who she was. Still he did not say anything and she left two bits behind when she slunk away. At least her former boss had been willing to pay his minions, even if he had betrayed her on his promises in the end.

"Thank you, that was delicious."

He smiled and nodded. "Eyup."

Walking towards town she could see her old family home. Taking a deep breath she trotted on towards it.

000

The Berrytwist household… her mother, father, older sister and her husband, and a little brother she had never met… had been only too happy to see her again. Tempest had blushed every time they called her name. It was going to take time to get used to being called Fizzlepop again. Not that she was ashamed of her real name, but it made her feel like a kid and the Storm King had not done… cute. It was also not a name that intimidated people when you were helping a monster build and evil empire. Tempest Shadow had been far more intimidating and she had definitely been able to make anyone who disregarded her for being a cute pony regret it.

After a few hours though she had to take her leave. Her family had been sad. "Don't worry, I just… I need to work up to seeing everyone all the time. I'm kind of used to being alone."

"Like Cranky the donkey," her little brother had asked.

Tempest had vague memories of a balding Jack yelling at her and her old friends to stay out of his yard. "Something like that." She looked at her parents who were obviously worried. "I promise I'm not leaving any time soon, but… I need space and time. I'm sure I can find something in town. And I have a few ponies who are probably still mad at me so I should probably make sure I'm not bringing any of that down on you."

"Well I don't think that'll be too much of an issue here," here sister said mysteriously.

"What do you mean?"

Her father smiled. "Well this is Ponyville. Let's just say, you aren't going to have such a hard time fitting in."

"But if you need your space, we understand," her mother said quickly, obviously afraid of driving her away. "Once you're settled though, we'd love for you to come back and have dinner with us Fizzlepop. I still make the best oatcake in town."

Relieved and a little uncertain she nodded. "I will mother. And… I'm really sorry."

"We understand dear," she said and gently nuzzled Tempest's cheek. "And we'll be here when you're ready to talk about it. We're just so happy to see you again."

Tempest rubbed her brother's head and he smiled up at her. "I'll bring presents next time. I really couldn't get much from… where I used to live." A destitute land full of monsters, thieves, and slave traders. She realized that her parents and siblings either had or would have been caged up and shipped off for sale there.

She left with her head held high, but as soon as she was out of sight it hung low again. As she walked through the streets of Ponyville she could practically feel the eyes on her. Not that she blamed them. She had kidnapped their princesses and enslaved the populous under the flag of a creature who happily admitted to being evil. All on his promise to fix her broken horn. An obsession for years that had only caused everyone, her included, needless torment.

She was so engrossed in her feelings of self loathing she bumped into another pony walking in front of her. "Oh, I'm so sorry!"

"Oh that's okay… wait… Tempest Shadow?"

Tempest looked up and saw Rarity and Applejack staring at her. Oh… um… hi." It sounded lame to her. To her surprise they both smiled.

"Darling, we haven't seen you since the Friendship Festival!" Rarity said.

"How in the wide world of Equestria have ya been?" Applejack asked.

"Uh… helping clean up the evil empire I helped build." They looked at her like they were bumping into a friend on the street rather than someone who had mercilessly hunted them across the countryside. What was with these ponies?

"Oh that must have been a lot of work," Rarity said sympathetically. "Applejack and I were on our way to the spa. Perhaps you would like to join us? Nothing helps one unwind like a day of pampering."

"Pampering?" Tempest blinked.

Applejack shrugged. "I know it is a little fru-fru, but everypony has to make time to unwind. Even Rainbow Dash stops by every now and then. I spend most of my time working my farm with my brother, sister, and Granny Smith."

Tempest blinked. "Wait, you mean that huge apple orchard I saw from the ship is yours and only four of you run it?"

"Well my friends help out when I need a little extra, but yep. Whenever I ain't out on assignment helping ponies with a friendship problem or some monster is attacking…" Her jaws snapped shut and she saw Tempest blush.

"Well it's not as if you are the only one who works hard Darling," Applejack said.

Applejack nodded. "I know Rarity, you work hard as heck at your boutiques. That's something we're never gonna forget in a hurry." She looked at Tempest. "Aside from working her hooves to nubs making dresses that amaze everyone from scratch, she had to display everything, has set up three different boutiques, and throw parties and fashion shows to show it all off. I tell ya when Rarity gets going she works night and day until she's exhausted."

"I had no idea fashion was such hard work," Tempest said. "Then again I usually just wore armor… but you two do all of that and more?"

"So we know how tired you must be," Rarity said. "Come on Tempest, it's obvious you need to relax."

"I'm not sure I should…"

"We won't take no for an answer," Applejack said. "You're coming with us if'n I have to hogtie you and drag you there."

Tempest sighed. "I would probably deserve that." The other two ponies shared a look. Stepping up on either side of her they practically frog marched her to the spa.

000

An hour later Tempest was conflicted. She felt really good after soaking in a hut tub and getting a massage, now she was wrapped in a white robe with the other two, her face plastered in green mud, and cucumbers over her eyes while a pony gave her hooves a pedicure. A towel was wrapped around her mane. A pony who would have probably been enslaved by the Storm King to buff his claws and fluff his fur. She had insisted on paying for it all, but that image stayed with her.

"So do you do this often?"

"You have to make time," Rarity said firmly. "I mean we all have a calling. Pinkie pie works really hard to throw parties; Fluttershy spends her whole day caring for animals, and Twilight… well she pushes herself like nothing else."

Applejack grunted her agreement "That filly organizes the castle library for fun… and that takes three days. She was working herself to death when she was just Celestia's student. Since she became an Alicorn princess the girl keeps herself busy and still feels like she's got nothing to do whenever we get a friendship mission and she's not in on it."

"Really? The Storm King usually just lounged around giving people orders and threatening or punishing anyone who disobeyed. Well… technically that last part was my job." Her ears lay flat.

"Yes, well I suppose some rulers are like that," Rarity said absently. "Celestia and Luna move the sun and moon every day. Celestia runs things when the sun is up and also teaches magic school. Luna looks after our dreams. They make all kinds of contacts and hold court. It's all quite exciting and amazing. Usually though they don't make any unreasonable demands and their subjects are happy to help out."

"I'll tell ya up until Twilight moved to town we'd see her maybe once a year as she came through to make sure everything was hunky dory. Maybe it's because we all got our calling… what's yours Tempest? I never did see you out of your armor and when we were on our way in I didn't really notice your cutie mark."

"Cutie mark? Oh I don't have one." She heard the others gasp, even the ponies filing their hooves. She opened one eye and a cucumber fell off revealing the room full of shocked ponies. "It's not that big a deal is it?"

"Well… maybe not," Applejack said uncertainly.

Rarity said, "How can you say that? A pony's mark expresses their deepest purpose. Their true destiny and the thing that makes you happiest. Why, it may be the most important thing in a pony's life!"

"Oh… um… I never really got into that. I haven't really had time to go chasing dreams or being happy. At my age I doubt I even could get a mark."

"Well that's just silly," Applejack said. "Tell you what, why don't' we finish up here and we'll send you to some experts and see what they think."

"Uh, if you think I should," she said. On the one hand it sounded superfluous. On the other she owed these ponies and if they thought she should do something, she couldn't argue. She pulled the towel off her head, revealing her hanging wet mane. A spark came off her horn and the whole thing sprang back to life in its usual shape. "Who are these experts?"

000

Tempest was standing in the tree house, looking nervously at the ponies around her. The place seemed like a kid's club house, but Rarity and Applejack had both assured her that despite their ages, these three had done a lot. All the same they were staring at her with obvious surprise. Almost as surprised as Tempest had been when Rarity told her that she was going to make her a ball gown and that all she wanted in return was for her to show it off because, "You're so amazingly gorgeous Darling and that scar on your eye is quite fetching. In one of my outfits any colt who sees you will faint at your beauty and the mares will just eat their hearts out in jealousy. I'm thinking a cape and maybe a spider-web motif in black and purple…" Tempest kept waiting for the punch line, but Applejack just agreed with her and to her surprise they seemed to mean it.

"You never got your cutie mark?" Applebloom asked.

"Well no. I never really tried of course. I was busy… trying to get my horn back."

"Sorry to seem so shocked," Sweetiebelle said. "It's just that we spent pretty much all our time trying to get ours. We've tried everything we could for years and it was a lot of work."

Scootaloo added, "Of course that's part of why we're so good at helping others get their marks and figuring out what they mean. We even helped a gryphon friend of ours figure out her purpose in life."

"Really? I didn't think gryphons could get cutie marks."

"We made her one," Applebloom said. "She still had a purpose. Gabby is the most helpful person we've ever met."

Scootaloo smiled and said, "Don't worry, we may be young but we've seen it all and done it all."

Tempest sighed and looked at the floor. "Have you almost destroyed whole villages? Nearly crushed all of Equestria? Or met someone who has?"

"Yes," all three of them said.

Startled she looked up at them. "What?"

"We know lots of ponies who've done that," Sweetiebelle said. "I mean usually it's not world-ending big, but yeah, a few of them."

Tempest blinked. "You're kidding, right?"

"No," Scootaloo said. "We wouldn't joke about that. Especially with someone who came to us for help with a cutie mark problem."

"Our sisters sent you," Applebloom said. "Why would we lie?"

"You're saying you three… did something like that?"

Applebloom blushed. "Well usually when we messed up it was smaller. A few riots. A stage destroyed. Unleshing the cutie pox or setting people at each other's throats because we spread some rumors. A few problems around town. That time we destroyed a rodeo helping a friend find his true place as a rodeo clown. Almost got ourselves and Fluttershy turned to stone. This and that. But yeah, we once almost destroyed the world."

"How?"

"We were on a fieldtrip to Princess Celestia's castle," Sweetie said.

"We started arguing next to this statue in her garden," Scootaloo said.

Applebloom said, "Turned out that statue was Discord, the god of chaos and our argument set him free. He rewrote the laws of nature, made it rain chocolate milk, stampeded mutant animals, undid gravity, and sealed away Celestia and Luna before transforming Twilight and her friends into their own evil twins."

"Twilight figured it out though and later they even reformed him… more or less," Scootaloo said.

"Yes they did," a poster on the wall said just as Tempest was about to ask if they were messing with her. They all jumped and turned and saw a picture of Rainbow Dash flying through space. It turned and smile at them before hopping off the poster and turning into a strange creature. "Did someone mention my name? My ears are burning." His ears suddenly burst into flames.

Tempest gasped and backed up. The three fillies however just rolled their eyes. Applebloom said, "Hey Discord. Whatcha up to today?"

"Oh nothing much. I was just minding my own business when I heard there was a new pony in town. When I heard you discussing me I just had to see what it's all about." He turned and looked at Tempest, his eyes suddenly glowing red. "Wait, aren't you the filly who turned Luna and Celestia into statues?"

"Uh… yes?" He rushed her, claws extended. "Eep!" then to her shock he pulled her into a hug.

"Oh thank you!"

"Discord!" The three little ponies said in unison.

He set her down and put his claws on his hips. "Well excuse me. I know we're friends now and maybe I sort of deserved it, but I did spend a thousand years as a perch for birds. I may be reformed now, but I did spend the majority of that time wishing those two would take my place." He turned back to Tempest. "For giving me a few days of those two learning how much fun being a statue is, I'll even forgive you for chasing Fluttershy, since from what I heard you did save her… and those others. This once." His eyes flashed an evil red.

"Yes sir," Tempest said.

"Actually you are quite lucky I'm in a forgiving mood, since I'm actually much more powerful than the princesses since they lost control of the Elements of Harmony," he said. "I was a little late to the festival. Fashionably late you know? Plus I was busy making a special surprise… which was ruined. If I'd been there when you attacked… and I was just mounting my rescue plans when I heard the princesses were statues…" He caught the crusader's glares. "I mean when Twilight saved the day yet again! Hurray!" He suddenly had little flags with Twilight's symbol on them. "Anyway your little coup d'état was a lovely diversion and the after party was great, but I am afraid by local standards the whole thing was a little sub par."

"Discord, it's nice to see you, and we'd love to play later, but we were in the middle of consulting on official Crusader business," Scootaloo said.

"Yeah, we're going to help our first adult pony get her cutie mark," Sweetiebelle told him.

"I could do that with a snap of my fingers," Discord said haughtily and prepared to snap.

"No!" All three yelled. Applebloom said, "You know magic to make someone get a cutie mark always backfires. I should know."

"Ah yes, well I suppose you would. Very well. But I'll consider that play date a binding promise. You swear we can have a little fun? Your sisters are always such sticks in the mud…"

"We swear," they chorused.

"Very well." He bowed to Tempest, doffing a top hat that had not been there a moment before. "Until later madam." A moment later he vanished.

"Now where were we?" Applebloom asked.

Tempest was shell shocked. "You're telling me that sort of thing happens around here a lot?"

"Sure," Sweetiebelle said. "I mean sometimes it happens in other places, like Canterlot or the Crystal Empire, but mostly around here."

"What did he mean by sub par?"

"Well," Scootaloo said. "Discord was the ruler of Equestria a thousand years ago before Luna and Celestia overthrew him. He also unleashed a sea of thorny black vines that took a thousand years to try to choke off everything in town and the magic Tree of harmony."

"Not to mention when they were reforming him and he tricked Fluttershy into promising not to turn him back into stone. If he hadn't cared about her trying to be his friend we'd all have been doomed," Applebloom said.

"And when he teamed up with Taurek who had escaped from Taurtarus, stole all of the princess's powers, was betrayed, and went on a burning rampage to destroy all of Equestria."

"Those other giant animals who escaped too… the bugbear, Cerberus…"

"Trixie accidentally unleashed an Ursa Minor on the town once." Tempest flinched and her jaw dropped open in shock. "Then she got that Alicorn amulet, trapped the whole town in a bubble, and enslaved all of us. She probably would have gone bigger if she hadn't been stopped."

"Twilight almost destroyed the town when she cast that love spell on her old toy because she was freaking out about her friendship lessons."

"Applejack almost let cows stampede through town. Plus that time she got a giant timber wolf mad at her."

"Pinkie Pie once cloned an army of herself that overran everything."

"Fluttershy almost kept all of the Breezies from getting home by being too nice."

"Rainbow Dash once kicked a dragon and almost made him mad enough to destroy the town… of course his smoke was already doing that."

"Rarity was under an evil spell and started turning everything to gold and jewels…"

"That one was mostly Spike…"

"I was going to give Spike the time he turned into a full grown dragon and rampaged through town, taking things and kidnapping Rarity." Applebloom pointed out the window. "You can still see his claw marks on that big rock out there." Tempest turned and indeed, huge claw tracks were dug deep into a boulder.

"How about when Chrysalis and the changelings replaced Princess Cadence? Or Twilight and her friends?"

"Yeah or when Starlight brainwashed that town and then came back and time traveled, literally destroying Equestria like twelve times."

"When King Sombra tried to reclaim the Crystal Empire or everyone there almost got crushed by that giant ice island during the games…"

"Oh and don't forget when Luna came back as Nightmare Moon and took over from Celestia or when her nightmare almost escaped into reality."

"Or those people in that parallel universe… their Twilight almost destroyed their world and ours. Sunset Shimmer stole Twilight's crown and became a demon who was going to use the people there as an army to invade us."

"The sirens…"

"I heard some camp leader was feeding off their magic and Starlight said some girl with a magic mirror went on a total rampage and almost killed them all…"

Tempest's head was spinning and her horn started sparking. "Wait! Wait! Wait!" They stopped and looked at her. "So… an invading army capturing the princesses and taking their power… this isn't news?"

The three fillies looked at each other and shrugged. "Meh."

"It's life in a land of wonder and enchantment," Scootaloo said.

"I suppose that explains a few things," Tempest said. "I was wondering why nobody seemed too upset with me for what I did. I as expecting angry mobs…"

"Oh don't worry. We all know you saw the error of your ways and helped save everyone when it counted," Applebloom said dismissively. "We're big on second chances in Equestria. In fact Twilight told me that the whole time you had her locked in that cage…" Tempest flinched. "All she wanted to do was give you a big hug. She said you probably needed it."

"I…" She shook her head. "How could she even think that? I attacked your country. I hunted them across the wastelands. I blew their ride from the sky and threw her in a cage. I stole her magic and gave it to a psychopath, just so I could fix my horn. How can she be so understanding after all of that?"

"Well heck, anypony would be if they gave it half a thought. We totally get it," Applebloom said.

"How? I mean… I'm a unicorn who lost her horn. That makes me… nothing."

"Hey!" Applebloom and Scootaloo said indignantly.

"That isn't true," Sweetiebelle said. "I only learned to use magic a little while ago and I'm not very good at it. Does that mean I was less of a pony?"

"Well… no…"

Scootaloo said. "I totally understand. I'm a Pegasus who can't fly. I might never fly. I see baby pegasi who can walk on the ceiling or fly around the room with other ponies hanging off them. Even Bulk Biceps, whose wings are smaller than mine, flew in the Equestria games." She let out a snort. "And when Taurek took everypony's magic, nopony could fly. When I looked it up I found out it's magic, because Pegasus wings aren't even big enough o lift us off the ground without it."

Applebloom said, "I'm just a little Earth pony. I may be strong, but I can't fly or do magic like either of my friends. That never stopped us from doing the same things and learning new skills. I wanted my cutie mark so bad it was all I thought about for a really long time. And I tried everything, even magic spells to get it. We were blank flanks longer than anyone else even though we tried everything. For like… years. Every otherpony seemed to be getting their destinies and we were left behind."

Tempest swallowed. "Oh. I… I'm sorry. I suppose I just assumed nobody else could understand what I've been going through."

"In the process though I've learned how to brew potions, build things, and all sorts of other skills that never even had anything to do with my cutie mark when I finally got it. My whole family raises apple trees and even though we're the Cutie mark Crusaders, I still help with that too." She looked lovingly at her flank. "Our cutie marks are strange and mysterious things. You know not only did my friends and I get our marks together when we realized that helpin' other ponies understand their own destiny was ours."

"I've been wondering at how a lot of ponies get marks related to their names, even though the name comes first," Scootaloo said.

"I'm not sure how that would work for me," Tempest admitted.

"Oh I don't know," Sweetiebelle said. "Tempest Shadow… I guess with your lightning…"

"Uh, that's not my real name. My real name is… Fizzlepop Berrytwist."

"Wow… great name!" All three said making her blush.

Scootaloo said, "And see, your horn fizzles and pops and you're the color of berries!" She looked at her friends I wonder if her special skill is. The way she took down everybody in like no time at the festival I thought it would be fighting."

"I think that's a learned skill, not so much her talent," Sweetie said. She looked at Tempest. "It didn't make you happy to beat people up for the Storm king, did it?"

"No! Okay maybe sometimes if someone was rude or thought they were tougher than me… but it was just a means to get my horn back." She looked down. "I suppose I thought once I had it back I'd be… whole."

"Sounds like Twilight," Scootaloo said

"The princess?"

"When she first got here she was obsessed with learning magic," Sweetie said. "She didn't think friends were important. Back in Canterlot she even abandoned the few she had… almost ruined Moondancer's whole life. When she got here she didn't like anypony or want to make friends. Then she did and… she saved the world."

"Like a couple dozen times."

Tempest smiled a little. "Yeah, she saved my world, I know that." She looked at them. "So you think that maybe I was… what? Supposed to lose my horn? Meant to work for the Storm King?"

"I think maybe you had a destiny, but it was your choice," Applebloom said. "Like I said, Starlight created a bunch of bad worlds when she went back in time. You were in the right place at the right time. You could have stuck with your psycho boss and helped him crush the world. Or you could have run away. Instead you stayed and protected Twilight and her friends and saved us all."

"I also hung the Storm King's head on a rope, filled it with candy, and used it as a piñata," Tempest pointed out. "Guess I still have a bit of a vindictive streak. Not sure that's in keeping with the Princess of Friendship's way of doing things."

"Cool!" The crusaders all said.

Scootaloo said, "I bet Discord would have nightmares if he knew about that!"

"Twilight did destroy Sombra…" Sweetie said.

Applebloom said, "And I heard Spike set like twelve of your guards on fire."

"They lost some fur, but they're fine," Tempest said quickly. "Okay so you're all pretty sure I've got some big destiny to do something that'll make me happy. And maybe part of it was being there to help Twilight. And I'll admit he would have been a problem even without me backing him up. But I still did a lot of bad things to good people. I am pretty sure I didn't deserve the kindness Twilight already showed me, let alone anything good in the future."

"Now that's just plumb stupid," Applebloom said. "Ya'll just gotta be willin' to help others as best ya can, make yourself better when you get the chance, and share the happiness you get with the people you do think deserve it."

"Twilight's always putting herself down about the whole 'princess' thing," Scootaloo said. "Saying how she doesn't deserve it or can't live up to it."

Tempest frowned. "You're kidding I mean after everything I did she still wanted to be my friend. She tried to talk the Storm King down. She's got amazing magic and she's saved the world more times than I can count. How does she think she doesn't deserve… everything?"

"Well you went and saved the whole plum world. Fought a bad guy, got turned to stone, fell off a balcony, and all that. Yet here you are telling us how you don't deserve to even be happy or find your cutie mark."

Tempest gritted her teeth. "Okay, so you may have a point." She took a deep breath through her nose. "You little fillies are pretty smart." They all beamed at her and she could not help smiling. "So how does this work?"

"Well normally we take a look at your mark and what you like to do and what you do naturally and try to figure it out. If you don't have one we would help you try a bunch of different things and see what you are good at and enjoy."

"I bet she'd make good sweets," Scootaloo said. "Maybe her mark will be a cup of a milkshake."

"With two straws and a cherry," Sweetiebelle said. "Or a bunch of cider and some fireworks."

"Right because I've got such a sweet and charming personality. It sounds like it could take a while."

"Of course," Applebloom said. "Because you have limitless potential. You could be anything. And when you find it, I can promise it'll be the thing that you were meant to do and will really make you happy."

"I hope you are right." She didn't sound like she believed them. "In the meantime I kind of still need a place to stay."

"You could come to my farm," Applebloom said. "We'd show you all the hospitality you could want."

"Rarity would let you stay with us. Or any of our other friends."

"Thanks girls, but I… I'm not up for crowds right now. Not all day every day. I want to be alone and think about what I'm going to do now."

"That's okay," Applebloom said. "We'll give some thought about what we can try the next time you come by. In the meantime you just need to stop moping and think about what makes you happy. I know you feel bad right now, but you need to power through it. you went and made up a complicated plan to get your horn back. You kidnapped four powerful princesses, built a magic staff, allied yourself with a deranged madman, and chased six ponies and a dragon across the whole wide world. Getting your smile back has got ta be easier'n that!"

"Yeah!" the other two said happily.

Tempest chuckled. "Okay, I promise I'll think about it."

"That's all we ask," Sweetiebelle said. "Oh, and one more thing."

"What's that?"

"Group hug!" The three cried and before Tempest could dodge away all three of them were holding her tight.

Tempest froe in place, eyes wide. She felt like she was panicking. The three adorable little ponies buried their faces in her fur and wrapped their legs around her, hugging tight. Tempest felt her heart race, like she was trapped. Then despite everything, tears welled up in her eyes. She tried to talk but all that came out was a shaking sob. She fell to her knees and cried and cried, tears flowing from her eyes uncontrollably. She didn't understand it. She had been sad, guilty, and in more pain over the years than she could comprehend and had not shed a tear since she was younger than the crusaders. Yet here she was, a grown mare blubbering like a foal without even really understanding why.

'Twilight was right," Scootaloo said, patting her shoulder with one tiny hoof. "You needed that."

000

Tempest had finally managed to get herself under control. She had been puffy and retched looking, but Sweetiebelle had used things she said she learned from Rarity and a short time later Tempest had looked fine and felt even better as she headed out from the tree house and back to town.

It was getting close to sunset and she knew she should giddy up and find a place to stay, even if it was only a night at the inn. Just the same her legs, which were still shaking a little, seemed to have a mind of their own. They just kept walking and her eyes locked on the tree-like crystal castle in the distance that seemed to glow. It was a bit past the town, far enough hat it would not cast a shadow over the place. Unlike the Storm King's palace. He had liked looking down and seeing the jagged shadow of his fortress darkening the city at its base. Many times Tempest had found her own privacy in some distant tower so she could just stare up at the sky. Nothing but her and the stars.

Her head hung as she approached. Would Twilight even want to see her? She remembered the way she had taunted the princess with how alone she'd been. Abandoned by her friends and left to rot in the cage. She had taken Twilight's powers without hesitation and handed them over to her then master without hesitation, begging him to restore her horn.

Sure Twilight had been nice at the friendship festival. Had even been impressed. But with time to think about it… how much friendship could even such a wonderful pony have for the one who had tried to take everything. Her power. Her friends. Her kingdom. Tempest had suffered long nights remembering the look of those bright amethyst eyes looking at her pleadingly from beyond black bars. Stabbing at her heart. She had known what she did was wrong but had done it anyway. And her reward? Being taken to a party and treated like a new best friend.

It had been fun. It had been amazing. And in some ways, though they clearly hadn't meant it, it had been torture because she knew it had to end.

As she looked up at the large doors of the castle in the red sunlight of the sunset she realized why she had cried when the crusaders had hugged her. Because for a moment she had begun to realize that maybe, just maybe, it wasn't all as pointless as her horn. That all the wonderful feelings and futures they offered her were possible and would not just be yanked away.

And truthfully the reason she had walked to the castle was because there was one thing she had actually begun to hope for. One thing she wanted. And even though she was sure that she would be left with nothing, a shattered mess left on the ground crying out in never ending loss and pain once again, the tiny pieces of her long ago broken heart had found a tiny piece of themselves still in tact and aching for what she was certain would never be hers. One last hopeless hope, a childish wish that had taken root in her as she hung near death in a swirling vortex with only a single pony's hoof tethering her to life. A pony who had no reason to care if she lived or died, sucked away like a leaf in the wind never to be seen again, and yet had ignored everything else to keep that from happening.

Nervously Tempest reached up to knock at the door. Before she could though a voice said behind her, "Nobody's home."

She spun around, part of her ready to attack. Then she saw a figure in the growing shadows and gulped. "Princess Twilight… I... I thought…" She blinked. "What are you doing out here?"

"Looking for you actually."

"Me?"

"I heard you were in town," she said. "So I immediately went out looking for you. But I kept missing you. Rainbow Dash sent me to Big Mac, who pointed me into town. Then someone told me about your parents and the spa…" She blushed. "I got a little distracted there. It's been so long since I saw you i… I thought if I did catch up to you I wanted to look my best."

"You look amazing," Tempest said. It was true. The princess's purple fur almost seemed to glitter with health and shine. Her hooves were polished. Her horn glowed softly and despite herself Tempest felt a sudden flare of jealousy, except it was squashed as she realized just how beautiful the jewel-like protrusion looked on Twilight's head.

"You look pretty good yourself," Twilight said.

Tempest felt her cheeks heat up. She had not blushed as much in years as she did around all of these ponies, especially under Twilight's gaze. "Thank you." They stood in silence for a moment.

"Applebloom mentioned that you didn't have anyplace to stay tonight," Twilight said. "It's getting dark and it's not very warm this time of year. If you don't mind I have a lot of empty rooms in a big empty castle…" Tempest felt her mouth open and close. Finally she gave a soft nod. Twilight's horn glowed and the doors opened so they could walk in. "The castle is a bit bigger on the inside than it looks on the outside. I'll show you around so you can find the kitchen and the bathrooms and everything."

"You don't have to."

"I want to. I've been looking for you all day so we could talk and what kind of princess would I be if I didn't treat my guest right?"

Tempest remembered her first day at the other castle. "Just curl up in a corner somewhere. I don't care. You'd just better come when I call little pony or else!" Falling into step beside Twilight she started walking down the long halls lined with doors. "Thank you princess."

"Call me Twilight." She flexed her wings and they brushed Tempest's rubs, making her shudder. "Oops, sorry. Some days I'm still not used to having wings."

"It's okay. I…. it felt nice. Your feathers are soft and warm."

Twilight smiled. "So is your fur. And you have amazing muscles." She glanced up. "Rarity is right. You're gorgeous and amazingly tall. I guess the Storm King was right, I'm just… cute."

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

"Well… maybe. I mean look at Celestia and Luna. Or Cadence. I sometimes think that one reason I have such trouble with being a princess is because I don't look like them."

"Please. From what I hear you're the one who holds this kingdom together."

"Not really. I mean I don't really do anything different as a princess than I did when I didn't have wings." She giggled. "What?"

"Well I don't know about Cadence or Celestia, but when we defeated Nightmare Moon and Luna first appeared she was just the size of a normal pony. Not that it says much. She's a shape shifter matching Discord. Rainbow Dash once saw her become a whole team of ponies calling themselves the Shadowbolts. Not that she wasn't… cute…but…"

"Whatever. You don't need that. Being tall and leggy isn't everything."

"Well there's also your amazing mane and tail, the muscles, and those eyes… I could fall into those all day. Do your eyelids do that naturally or did you have to work on it?"

"Do what?"

"Nothing." She smirked.

Tempest shook her head. "Don't be silly. Anyway I intimidate people. I look down on them and the way I move…"

"It's like you're part tiger."

"Exactly. Like I'm just getting ready to attack. And I usually am. You saw me outside. You came up behind me and I was a second from pinning you to the ground." Twilight smiled and bumped into Tempest with her shoulder. "I'm serious."

"I know."

"Then there's my horn, flashing every time I lose a grip on my emotions. I'm always sneering at people."

"It's not a sneer. The way you grit your teeth and move your lips. It's sort of a snarl, but not so much angry as confident. I remember how you looked on that ship when you said you were hoping we'd do it the hard way. Scary."

"Exactly."

"But scary can be good. Especially when you know that behind it, there isn't anything dangerous."

Tempest raised a brow. "You don't think I'm dangerous?"

Twilight giggled and swatted the taller pony with her tail. "Nope. I knew deep down you were a big softy when we met. Couldn't even turn me to stone."

"I…" She smiled and shook her head. "I guess you see right through me. I'm just a puffball on hooves."

"Like you don't know you're probably the hottest pony in Equestria."

"Right, because you're so hideous. With that long flowing mane and those striped, your wings, and that horn. Not to mention those big shining eyes and that adorable muzzle. One look in your eyes and it was like my heart was beating again for the first time in I can't remember how long."

"Yeah, well one look at your eyes and I felt like my heart was going to explode in my chest. That scar over your eye was just so hot and I could tell that air of distain you had for everyone was totally fake. Nobody with eyes that kind could really be evil. I just couldn't believe it." She smiled. "And I was right. You sacrificed yourself to save me and my friends."

"Well the world needed you. Me, I was useless. Betrayed. Without any hope or friends. I couldn't let that monster hurt you. You… you matter Twilight."

"You matter too Fizzlepop."

Tempest was not sure what to say. She wanted to deny it, but that would be like calling Twilight a liar. Besides, she realized she wanted to believe the princess. So she just kept her mouth shut, even though part was certain that if her body had joined the rubble that day Twilight might have been sad and then gone off with her friends to the party. Another part imagined her wailing with loss.

Twilight meanwhile just kept walking. She had promised a tour, but was not actually saying anything or giving directions. She was aware that either she or Tempest had walked a little closer to the other and now as they moved they were pressed up against one another. She felt warm and protected with the taller pony next to her. Tempest may not even realize she was doing it, but she was hovering almost protectively, her eyes darting around.

"Where are your guards?"

"What guards?"

Tempest looked shocked. "Come on, someone with a castle like this and a list of enemies like you have and you don't have a single guard?"

Twilight shrugged. "I have my magic… and my friends… including a fire breathing dragon." Tempest pressed her lips together obviously not liking the lax security. Twilight took that as a good sign. "I take it you care what happens to me."

"I don't want anything to happen to my princess," Tempest said.

Twilight giggled and threw her head, brushing her mane across Tempest's neck. They just kept walking for a while. How long she had no idea, but they eventually found themselves up several flights of stairs and they passed a balcony behind clear crystal doors. Twilight looked outside and saw the stars and the moon shining brightly. "Care to join me for some fresh air?"

Tempest nodded and the doors opened as they approached. They went out to the balcony and looked out. The town was lit by a quarter moon reflecting off the castle. The whole of Ponyville was spread out before them as they took a seat, staring over the trellis. It looked like it was painted in silver. Then their eyes moved up to the sparkling night sky, stars barely broken by the occasional cloud.

She shuddered a it in the cool night air, but did not want to say anything or go inside. It was quiet and cool and she loved it. She was surprised then when Twilight yawned and stretched, her wings unfurling. As they refolded one warm feathered limb somehow seemed to get caught on Tempest's shoulders, wrapping around her like a cape and pulling her closer to Twilight's side. She looked at Twilight, wondering if it was an accident, but the smaller pony just leaned against her.

Tempest did not know how long she stood like that just wrapped in Twilight's warm purple feathers like from the edges by moonlight. But she felt her heart sore and finally she moved. Maybe somewhere deep inside she had convinced herself it was a dream. And inside she really hoped it was not. It was just that she felt like she was a piece of metal being worked by a blacksmith. Hope, melted, and beaten into new shapes. Emotions hurt worse than physical pain because they felt so good and every moment Tempest just expected it all to pop like a bubble. So she needed to act now, before it was too later.

She leaned down and pressed her muzzle into the alicorn's ear. "Twilight?"

"Yes, Fizzlepop?" Normally her given name embarrassed Tempest. When Twilight said it, it sounded wonderful. Her horn sparked in a fountain and she felt a tingle down her spine. Slowly she opened her mouth and took the tip of Twilight's ear between her lips, gently closing her teeth on the thin cartilage, biting down and running the tip of her tongue along the edge. Twilight moaned and at first Tempest thought she had gone too far, when the little princess leaned harder against her. "Oh Fizzlepop. Mmm… that feels so good." She bit her lower lip, teeth showing and eyes rolling in her head. Her muzzle lifted up and their eyes met.

Tempest opened her mouth. "Twilight, your eyes… so beautiful."

Twilight's lips parted and she might have complained that Tempest had let her ear go or said something else. She never got the chance. Their mouths met in a warm hot kiss. Both of them moaned and they pressed closer together, shoulder to shoulder and hip to hip. Tempest felt the other pony's wavy main brush against her and it was like fire. Her horn was sparking and flashing. Twilight's glowed and throbbed like a heartbeat. Their eyes closed and they melted into one another.

When the kiss broke Twilight's head ducked against Tempest's shoulder. She felt Twilight's hot breath on her skin, cooled by the night air and now almost like it was on fire. Feathers tickled her ribs. That glowing horn right in her face, brushing her cheek. She could not resist placing a kiss right on the tip, sucking just a little. To her joy she heard Twilight gasp and felt her shudder a little.

Then Twilight was nuzzling her neck and Tempest raised her chin, feeling the warmth of the princess's mouth on her throat. Kissing, licking, and nibbling her way back up to Tempest's mouth, but agonizingly slowly. Stopping along the way to explore places she had read about in books and smiling in a pleased way as her research paid off, sending waves of pleasure through Tempest's body and making her gasp out loud. She felt powerful and attractive as the taller mare shook against her in the cool night air in a way that had nothing to do with the temperature. One of Tempest's hooves lifted and pounded down on the balcony over and over again and tears gathered in the corners of her eyes. She whimpered in a desperate hungry way and then those eyes opened and caught Twilight's gaze. They froze for a timeless moment that could have been a second or an hour before Tempest purposefully lowered her mouth and Twilight rose to meet her.

Even that kiss had to end though and the two pressed together, wrapped in the tent of Twilight's wings with their heads leaning on one another's shoulders. Tempest said huskily, "I've wanted to do that since the first time I saw you. Glaring up at me so defiantly."

"I've wanted to just hold you since the first time we really talked. You lashing out at me. Trying to be cruel. To take me hate you when I could see how much you were hurting. All I wanted to do was hold you and let you know it would all be alright. That I would do anything if it meant healing the hole in your heart."

Tempest saw a few of the tears she had not shed earlier in the day sparkle briefly on Twilight's mane. It amazed her how this little pony seemed to be able to see inside her as easily as reading a book. How she was giving her everything she needed and wanted with little more than a hug and a few sappy words that burned in her chest. There was something she needed to say herself. "You do know that we're being watched, right?"

Twilight nodded against her neck, kissing Tempest where her neck met her shoulder. "My student and my assistant. They've been trailing me all day. I'm going to give them so many assignments tomorrow as punishment."

"Tomorrow huh?"

"After I make breakfast." She pulled back and smiled up at Tempest, loving the feel of the mare's eyes on her. "Come on, it's cold out here and it's getting late. Let's go to bed."

"You never told me where I'll be sleeping."

Twilight pulled away and walked towards the door, bumping her hip playfully against Tempest's as she passed. As she stepped back inside the castle she looked over her shoulder at Tempest and said, "Who said anything about sleeping?"

Amazed at the sudden boldness in the princess Tempest gave a lopsided smile and feeling as if she were floating on her hooves she followed meekly behind to wherever Twilight wanted to lead her. Her eyes glazed over dreamily and her heart pounded in her chest while she clopped happily down the seemingly endless hallways in a strange castle that suddenly felt like home. Neither of them noticed the heart-shaped firework like mark in the color's of Twilight's mane that suddenly appeared on Tempest's hip.

000

"Twilight?"

"Yes Fizzlepop?"

"This is fun and all… but it's not exactly what I expected."

"What do you mean?"

"Well when you invited me back to your room, I didn't think we'd be spending all night braiding each other's manes and making s'mores."

"Oh?' What were we supposed to do?"

"Um…" *whisper-whisper*

"Oh! Uh… are you sure?"

*Long drawn out silence* "You're messing with me, aren't you?"

*Giggle* "Maybe a little bit."

"One thing first. What's that thing hanging in your closet with all the leather straps and lace?"

"Oh that. Well it's a saddle. For when Spike needs to ride."

"Can I try it on?"

"Sure."

000

"Tempest!"

Tempest jumped up, eyes half closed and shouted, "Coming master!" Then she blinked her eyes and saw the pink and purple pony staring at her from the door of the room she was in. She looked down and saw that she was standing on a large soft bed and was surrounded by softly glowing crystal walls. "Huh?"

"Are you okay? I'm Starlight Glimmer. Twilight asked me to come get you for breakfast."

"Oh! Uh, right. Sorry." Her ears folded back and her head hung. "I'm kind of used to being woken up by a deranged psychopath with a lot of demands."

Starlight smiled. "Well I wouldn't say Twilight's deranged… exactly."

Tempest chuckled and hopped down to the floor. Starlight led the way through the hallways. Unsure what else to talk about and deciding to get right to it Tempest said, "So I hear I'm not the first pony to try and um…"

"Turn to a life of villainy and domination to get something you want because of a childhood trauma?"

"Yeah… that."

"It's true. You aren't even the first of Twilight's friends to steal her powers since she became a princess. In two different worlds." She smiled ruefully. "It's getting to be kind of a thing. By the way, I heard about that staff you designed to steal her and the other princesses' powers. I used Fall-Spring's absorption dynamic to design one that stole cutie marks, but I had to build a separate containment spell and couldn't really harness their powers or anything. How did you make the magic accessible and not come up against the energy limitations?"

"I used a combination of the Starswirl vortex spell and built the thing out of magical blackwood and a lightning crystal."

"Those are hard to find."

"It's easier when you've got an army and a bunch of subjugated citizens to scour the land nonstop." She bit her lip.

"Look if you're worried about how everyone will feel about you, I can tell you from experience Twilight and her friends are a really forgiving group."

"That… actually I noticed that, but I feel like I shouldn't be forgiven that easily. I know I did the right thing in the end, but I'm not sure it makes up for everything else I've done. I even enjoyed it a lot of the time."

"Tell me about it. I was ruler of my own little town and even though I was preaching about giving up special talents and cutie marks, I wouldn't give up mine because I needed my magic to keep everyone else under my hoof. Then when I was defeated I got a lot of pleasure out of going back in time and destroying Twilight's connection with her friends even though I ended up destroying all of Equestia a dozen times over." She frowned. "The hard part was later when I went back to my village to apologize. I thought everyone would hate me, but they al forgave me and…"

"And that sort of feels worse because you're not sure you'd do the same."

"Except I did get the chance," Starlight said. "I visited another convert of our amazing princess in another world and while I was there a girl with a magic mirror kind of went on a rampage… anyway just think about this. If Twilight went crazy and started tearing the world apart, wouldn't you forgive her?"

"I'd forgive that pony anything," Tempest said with a smile.

Starlight looked at her flank. "I kind of figured."

Tempest looked back and blushed. "Uh yeah, that… that just happened." She hesitated and said, "I guess I am also a little unsure about how everyone keeps taking this in stride. I know what I did was wrong, but honestly… I kind of thought invading Equestria and defeating the all powerful alicorn princesses was kind of a big deal and everyone acts like I just bumped into them at the market."

"Like you did this big evil thing that defined your life and suddenly it doesn't matter" Starlight saw the grateful understanding in Tempest's eyes. "It works the same way from the other side. Twilight and her friends save the world. Then they go out to the far corners of the world and solve friendship problems. Afterwards maybe they have a nice big party, but the next week they're back where they were. Rarity is back working in her dress shop; Applejack is taking care of her orchard, and Twilight's back in the library pouring over old books. I guess that in the end if the world doesn't actually end everyone figures it wasn't that big of a deal. And if it does there's nobody left to complain."

"I just feel like I need to do something special to make up for it…"

"And now you find that you aren't so special. I get that. I've been left behind to putter around here while everyone else goes off to solve friendship problems. I'm Twilight's student, but sometimes she's talking to Sunset Shimmer or dealing with Discord or making new friends like you. I feel left out sometimes. Then I think, do I really want to spend my time putting my life in danger? Am I a bad pony for not throwing myself in the path of monsters when my new friends are out there doing it? Or am I wrong for feeling bored hanging around the castle and not getting involved in everyone else's business like Twilight and her friends? I sure don't feel like I should ever be in charge of stuff ever again even when it's necessary."

Tempest sighed. "Being a minion was so much easier. Do what the boss said, get my horn back, and don't ask questions. No big existential problems or feelings. Just that nice cold place inside and the certainty of how things are going to be."

They stepped into a dining room and Twilight, wearing an apron was levitating pancakes onto plates. Spike was already digging in. And Twilight's hearing was apparently very good because she said, "I know exactly what you two mean."

"What?" They said.

"Well I didn't hear everything you were talking about, but I know about that cold certainty." She said as the other two sat down at their plates.

Spike slurped syrup off his fork. "No kidding. When we lived in Canterlot Twilight didn't really care about anything but studying."

Twilight blushed. "I was… focused." Starlight and Tempest shared a look.

The unicorns started to eat. At least Twilight and Starlight did, using their magic to levitate their forks. Tempest stared at her plate. "Um… I'm not that hungry…" Her stomach growled. "Okay I just…. Feel a little awkward eating without silverware."

"Don't be silly," Twilight said. "I have Earth ponies and pegasi around all the time. Not every pony can use a fork." Tempest still hesitated. "Here, if it's that big a deal, let me help." Tempest's fork glowed and levitated, spearing a bit of pancake. "Say ah!"

Starlight was grinning at her and Tempest's face felt like it was on fir. But she opened her mouth and allowed Twilight to feed her. Spike grinned, taking a bite, and wiggled his eyebrows.

Twilight was just getting her first bite, mouth open, when from outside the castle they heard a loud series of roars and a lot of screaming. "Aw…" With a groan she set their forks down. "You guys keep eating. I'll see what's going on." They ignored her and followed her to the window. "Oh no, rockodiles!" The giant reptiles with heir boulder-like scales were crawling through town, hissing and snapping at the ponies.

"I can handle this…" Tempest said; her horn sparking.

"No, Tempest, don't hurt them," Twilight said. "They're just animals. We need to corral them and keep them from attacking anypony." Outside they saw Rainbow Dash and Applejack running around with roped, lassoing and tying up some of the big lizards. "Like that." She opened the window and spread her wings, flying out.

"Come on, we should help," Starlight said. The two ponies glowed as she levitated them out the window.

Spike pursed his lips. "You know what… they've got this." He waddled back over to the table and began scraping their pancakes onto his plate. "Yum."

000

A rockodile was about to snap its jaws on Bonbon and Lyra, the two ponies trapped screaming against a wall. Then in a purple and red blur Tempest was there. When landed on the beast's snout, forcing it shut. With a sneer she wrapped her legs around its head and twisted, sending it rolling down the street and bouncing. She looked at the two cowering ponies, standing over them. "You two alright?" They nodded. "Then run!"

"Thank you ma'am," the chorused before dashing off.

The reptile righted itself and shook off the dust of the road. It opened its mouth and with a roar ran at her again. Tempest turned and glared at it. "Oh it is on!"

Starlight was channeling her magic to grow a cage made of tree roots. Meanwhile Twilight flew overhead, levitating the captured rockodiles into the cage. The other mane six ponies had shown up. Applejack had hogtied three of them and Rainbow Dash was diving down and grabbing smaller ones to drop them into the cage. Pinkie was briefly cornered by a large one when suddenly her pet Gummie caught it by the tail and swung it around, sending it flying in an ark to join the others in the cage.

Fluttershy was talking to some of them and they all walked single file into the cage when she asked. Rarity had weaved a net and had a half dozen more wrapped inside.

The last bunch walked in like Fluttershy's under Tempest's stern look. They were whimpering and cringing as they did. She narrowed her eyes and they hurried up. Then starlight sealed the cage, leaving them trapped.

"Did we get 'em all?" Applejack asked.

"I think so," Twilight said. "I just want to know why they're suddenly here."

"Well we know where they come from," Rainbow Dash said.

Twilight said, "Good point. Starlight, why don't you and Fluttershy take care of these guys while we figure out what drove them out of the forest. Applejack you, Rarity, and Pinkie go around town and make sure that we got all of them and nopony is hurt. Rainbow Dash and I will fly over the forest and see if we can figure out what's going on."

"Can I help?" Tempest asked.

Twilight smiled. "Tempest, you've done more than enough. You have family in town don't you? You should make sure they're okay."

Realization dawned and Tempest was about to run off, but she froze. "But…"

"Go," Twilight said gently. Nodding she turned and trotted off. Twilight looked at the others. "Keep an eye on her for me, will you?"

"Of course Sugarcube," Applejack said. "You two just make sue that if there's some big problem, you don't try handling it without us."

"We'll be fine," Rainbow said. "It's just recon."

000

Tempest's family was just fine. Her brother had apparently been in town and saw Tempest fighting some of the rockodiles. The hero worship in his eyes was nice, but disconcerting. Her parents and sister had hugged her, thanked her for helping save the town, and had been very happy to see her again. Her mother aid, "Dear, you shouldn't have put yourself in danger like that. The princess would have handled things."

"Those things? Please. I wasn't in any danger, believe me." She looked them in the eyes and smiled. "Besides Princess Twilight may be really capable, but I don't think I could just stand by and let her and her friends do everything. I owe them too much and I'm not really the sit at home type."

"Not even a little?" Her father asked.

Tempest hesitated. "Well I suppose I could stay a little while…"

She stayed the night and ate dinner with them. She was obviously uncomfortable, but nobody mentioned it. They asked her about what it was like where she had lived. She carefully told them about the creatures that lived there and a few other things. She avoided a lot of topics. And then she took a night on the couch. They may have been poorly developed fanfic characters, but they were her family and it seemed like spending a night with them was the least she could do.

The next day she headed out to the castle to see how things had gone, but nobody was there. She checked the cage with the rockodiles, but even Fluttershy was gone. Asking around she found the mayor who said, "The last I heard Twilight and Rainbow Dash had not returned so the others went looking for her."

"Have you organized a search party?"

"Not yet. We're giving them time to deal with whatever the problem is. They're very competent and the Ever Free Forest is no place for ponies to just charge in. But I've got a letter from Celestia and if they are not back by tomorrow she has promised to bring her palace guards."

"Nothing else?"

"Well it's a bit worrying, but Princess Luna has been checking to and she says that Twilight and the others did not appear on the dream plane last night. If they're busy they might not have had time to sleep, but…"

Tempest narrowed her eyes. "I'm going to look for them."

"You really shouldn't. The forest is very dangerous and…" She saw the look in the pony's eyes. "You shouldn't go alone."

"I won't be alone, I'll find them," she said certainly. "I've tracked those ponies across wastelands. They couldn't get away when they were trying to lose me and had help. I won't be alone for long because I will find them."

"Then I wish you luck and promise that we'll all come looking if you don't come back. Princess Twilight is the most beloved pony in Equestria. We won't abandon her or the others."

"I believe you."

Twisting around Tempest ran away heading straight for the forest.

000

The Ever Free Forest turned out to be less dangerous than she had expected, but that was because a few miles in Tempest found that the whole thing had been frozen over. It was covered in snow and thick ice. She found a river with a large purple sea serpent with a thick mane of hair and a moustache frozen in place like an ornament. She did not know much about the deep forest, but she knew this was not normal.

"I suppose whatever is causing this must be at the heart of this cold…" She tapped the ice with her hoof. "No wonder the rockodiles fled. They must have been far enough downriver to feel the cold without getting frozen."

She continued on, using her horn to send sparks of warmth over her body. A good thing too. As she went she saw a lot of other frozen creatures. A hydra like a statue. A chimera that was huddled inside a tree, keeping itself warm with fire and too cold to even dare attack her as she passed. She followed the river, using it as a path. It was easier than trying to negotiate the frozen roots.

At one point she saw a light in the woods and came across a strange hut. She went up to it and knocked. The door opened and a zebra stood there. "Excuse me, but have you seen a few little ponies running around here? Led by a purple alicorn."

"You speak to me of my friend. She and the others passed by at yesterday's end. They asked about the freezing ice and what they could do to once again make it nice."

Tempest frowned. "You're going to keep speaking it rhyme, aren't you?"

"It's what I do."

"Okay, so what did you say, to help Twilight save the day?"

The zebra frowned. "Nobody likes a smartass purple one. You may want to have your fun, but maybe you could wait until I'm done." Tempest pressed her lisp together. "I am Zecora and the princess is my friend. So she asked me where the ice will end. I don't know from whence it came, but I was able to give her some help all the same. Three ponies have been near the lake, and with them tools they did take. They went away and did not come back, but shortly later did the ice attack."

"So… I should keep following the river?"

"If you like I can show you exactly where you want to go."

"No, you should head back to Ponyville. Princess Celestia promised to send some guards tomorrow. They will probably need directions."

Zecora nodded, seeing the wisdom of it. "I will do as you say and soon I will be on my way. Can I assume you do not plan to stay?"

"No, I… I have to find Twilight. I can't take the risk of being too late." She sighed. "This would have been so much easier if I still had an army. Commander Tempest may not have had friends, but she did have minions and Fizzplepop Berrytwist doesn't have anybody."

The zebra grinned. "If truth is in the words I hear, Tempest Shadow would not be here. For her no pony would shed a tear. Fizzlepop is the one who seems to care."

She raised a brow and stood up straight. "I am not that reformed. I know what Twilight would want, but I'm not her." Her voice took on a dangerous tone and as she spoke Zecora shivered and not from the cold. She grit her teeth and sneered as she looked around at the white frozen forest, her horn flashing like lightning. "Another reason for you to go to Ponyville little zebra. Because if Fizzlepop doesn't find her friends or if they're hurt, then Tempest Shadow is going to burn this forest and whoever hurt them to ashes."

000

The declaration was not exactly the way Twilight taught people to act she knew, but it felt right. She was changing, but she had to be herself. Twilight had brought out sides of her that Tempest had not known she even had left, but she was a warrior. She had spent years commanding an army in a place where slavery and extortion were a part of life. She was not going to start off being a vicious attacker like she had before, but she would retaliate if it came to it. Let the princess and her friends negotiate. Tempest's job was to keep them safe and any good bodyguard knew that you did not let your principal endanger themselves because they thought they did not need a bodyguard. Tempest had already sacrificed herself once to save those ponies, Twilight in particular. She had no problem doing it again, even if what she did made Twilight hate her. Keeping Twilight alive and well was worth ripping her own heart from her chest if need be.

She found what she was looking for several hours later. It was a huge wall, like a castle, in the side of a cliff. Climbing up along it carefully she saw that it was a dam. When she got to the top it was clear that the lake behind it was frozen solid.

In the middle was a dome of ice in the shape of bars and her friends were inside it. Prancing around it were four white horses that looked as if they were carved of ice and snow. They seemed to fade in and out, like they were made of blowing snow. One of them had a crown if icicles and he loomed over the cage. The ponies inside were huddled together and shivering but were glaring out at their captors.

"Why are you doing this?" Twilight asked. "You've had us in here for hours. What do you want?"

"Don't you know yet little pony? Don't you feel it growing?" The leader said; his voice an icy wind. "It was your people who invited up back. We knew you would, eventually."

"What do you mean?"

He waved a hoof and a cold wind blew the snow from a group of lumps further away Three frozen ponies appeared from under the snow. "Do you know these three?"

"That's the pony who tried to cheat me out of my prize in Manehattan, when I got that thread that turned out to be the key to Twilight's chest…" Rarity said.

Applejack added, "That big one used to run the casino Flim and Flam took over after we revealed him to be a low down no account backstabber."

Pinkie Pie said, "And that last guy is that mean manager who used to run Countess Coluratura's show until we proved he was just using her."

The creature nodded. "Three ponies, with hearts as cold as ice. They came here with a plan. To start a new city. One that would eventually take your little town and turn it into a parking lot in their new city. Rich enough to make their plan work, but when I sensed their cold hearts I appeared and offered them a deal. They wanted revenge when you took everything they cared about from them, leaving them even colder than before."

Twilight frowned and looked at them before turning back to him. "We would have helped them if they had asked."

"Why would they need help?" He taunted. Moving around the frozen ponies he blew cool air over them and the ice thickened. "They did not regret their actions. They did not care about anything but money. And now… now they feel no pain. So sadness. No suffering. They can exist forever as they are and soon all of Equestria will be the same."

"That will never happen," Twilight said and the others all agreed with her.

"Oh but it will. My people feed off of the cold in your hearts. For so long even in the cold of winter you ponies have loved and laughed and driven us away with your caring. But I, King Coldheart, will bring back the age of the wendigos! And we will never be banished again."

"Even if you do defeat us, there are others who will stand up to you," Twilight said.

"Who? Discord? Your other princesses? No amount of magic will be enough his time. Because we have you, the most loved ponies in Equestria." He leaned forward. "I will put a shard into your hearts. You will become cold and distant. And it will spread as your fellow ponies realize that you no longer care. That pain will spread and they too will become cold, until every heart in Equestria that you have ever touched freezes solid."

Fluttershy said, "That will never happen."

"Discord tried the same thing when he got loose," Rainbow Dash said. "He used our fears and weaknesses to turn us against ourselves, but Twilight found a way to stop it."

The wendigo snorted. "Everyone has a dark cold place in their heart. The part that recriminates for the evil a pony does and drives them to do better. It is as much a part of them as the love that has kept us at bay. As needed and impossible to get rid of. These three…" He nodded at the frozen ponies. "Came away here to be alone and start their plan, unhindered. It let us in when we have been kept back. They made a deal and I provided the dam they wanted, for free instead of the money they wanted to spend.

"It gave us this place to strike from and you delivered yourselves right to us."

"That won't work on them," Starlight said, speaking for the first time.

"It works on everyone. If you have a conscience, if you feel bad about hurting others, it's already inside you and waiting to grow. To make you understand that you are in the wrong. Or that someone else has done something unforgivable."

"But… that's a good thing," Pinkie said.

"Unless it is turned against you. Like any good medicine it can heal… or kill. Allow me to demonstrate." He took a deep breath and exhaled a rain of ice shards. The ponies cried out as they pierced their eyes. There was a brief moment. As they were enveloped in ice and then it cracked. Their bodies were edged in frost, but they looked normal. No longer afraid. "How does it feel to know that through you all of Equestria will be destroyed?"

"Right," Twilight said, her voice soft and her gaze trancelike. "I always knew I'd be the reason we failed to save it one day. I never should have been made a princess. I don't deserve it. It was a mistake and I knew it and I should have never let it happen."

"I always give ponies things," Rarity said. "Outside frippery. Nothing of substance. I never did anything that matters."

Pinkie Pie shuddered, her frizzy hair falling in limp curtains. "Always a joke. Never serious. I distract people with parties, but the party always ends. It doesn't take away anyone's problems. Just delays them."

Applejack said, "I act like I'm in charge all the time. Lie I'm everyone's mama. But what do I know about taking care of anyone? My parents are dead. My little sister and big brother take care of me more often. And no matter how many apples we harvest, nothin's ever gonna change that."

Spike said, "I always knew I'd be the weak link. A dragon who tries to live among ponies. What a joke."

Rainbow Dash looked like she was crying, but no tears would come. "Fastest flier. Wondercolt. What good does it do? It's all frivolous. A way to show off. The wendigos are going to win and we can't stop them.

Starlight sighed. "I never should have come along with you. I tried so hard to be a friend. To be better than I was. Because I knew deep down that nothing would work. I wasted all that time trying to destroy others. I would have been better using that time travel spell to keep myself from being born."

The wendigo king laughed. "Look my subjects Watch as they wallow and their own feelings eat them from the inside. When we send them back their caring friends will beat their hooves on the wall of ice around theirs hearts until they realize it's futile. Then they too will sink into heir own loss and despair. The world will be ours again!"

"I can't let that happen." Tempest said. The wendigos turned as she clopped across the dam, her hooves echoing below her.

"Another little pony. Do you think you can reach your friend little pony? Because I sense a cold in you."

"I know."

"You have no chance of keeping us out."

"I know," she said again, moving closer.

"Then you know that I will win." He breathed out another blast of ice, enveloping Tempest.

"No," her voice said from inside the cloud. "You won't."

The wendigo blinked and stopped as she stepped out unaffected. "How?"

"I live in the cold," Tempest said. "I have ice around my heart. Nothing from the outside touches it. Freeze it all you want, it's like trying to burn fire." She walked forward and looked up into Coldheart's eyes. "It's like an igloo in there."

"Then why are you here?" He glanced at the ponies in the cage. The other wendigos backed up nervously. Tempest's eyes were colder than them. "Surely not for them."

"Yes, for them. Because inside the heart of an igloo is always a person. Warm. Protected. And the more ice you pile on the safer and warmer it is. And my princess… she brought me out from inside it. She never got in but she found me and brought me out. To her." She stamped her hoof and the ice cracked under it. She bared her teeth and looked up into the wendigo's eyes. "So you have a choice. You can calmly back off and return my friends to normal. Or you can be… difficult."

The wendigo bared his fangs, sharp things like icicles in his mouth. "I will never be banished again."

Tempest smiled and the sparks from her horn suddenly reflected in her eyes. "I was hoping you'd pick difficult."

000

The fight was intense. Tempest may not have been her real name, but it was how she fought. The wendigos attacked and tried to freeze her with ice and snow, but she enveloped herself in lightning and their attacks shattered. They were feeding off the coldness in her heart, but so did she and under it there was a white hot core. Tempest did not rely on love and friendship to fight. She fought cold. Harsh and without mercy or real anger at anyone but herself if she missed and she rarely missed.

The wendigos did not know how to fight this. It was as if she were turning their power against them. Add in physical damage. They tried to manifest bodies and they shattered under blows from her hooves. Explosions of lightning that tore them apart like snowballs against a wall. Unstoppable. With absolute focus. It was like trying to fight an avalanche.

The others soon fled, becoming wind and flying towards the north. The cage the ponies had been in was shattered, but they just sat there staring at nothing as they wallowed in their grief.

Coldheart kept fighting. "I will not be banished again!"

Tempest turned and kicked back with both hind legs. He fell back. She walked forward slowly and stood over him, glaring down with a look on her face that showed she thought him a bug. Something that lived in slime. Not a king. A loser. "Yes, you will." She lifted one hoof, muscles flexing.

"Mercy," he begged.

Tempest considered. She looked at Twilight. The princess would give him a chance. But Twilight was under a spell. And when she looked back down she saw a smirk on Coldheart's face when she hesitated. "No." The crack filled the air. A moment later her hoof was in a pile of snow surrounded by a shattered crown.

The air was still cold though and the ponies seemed as self-absorbed with their remorse as ever. Tempest looked at Twilight and said, "Forget that." She walked over and stood before twilight. She knew about ice in the heart. You couldn't distract from it with positive or negative emotions. Only one thing would get through: pain. "Sorry about this princess." There was a crackle as a bolt of lightning hit the whole group.

They all cried out and fell to the ground. Twilight, the alicorn and most powerful pony in the group, was up first. "Ow!" Her eyes held anger for the first time since Tempest had known her. Tempest wrapped a hoof around her head and pulled her into a kiss. Twilight struggled for a moment and then melted into it. Her mind going blank. When Tempest finally broke so they could breathe she smiled dreamily. A drop of water, much bigger and less syrupy than a tear, fell from each eye. "What… what did you do?"

Tempest smirked. "Amateurs. They're too used to dealing with ponies that would never hurt their friends. Love, guilt, forgiveness… that won't break down self recrimination or distract from it. Physical pain… that goes right to the heart. Like a hammer to hot iron." She looked around. The other ponies were shakily getting up. They looked shocked even as the melted ice shards dripped from their eyes. The air seemed to warm too and the three frozen ponies were moving now, their covering cracking. "Hurt your body enough and emotions fade. Shoot a few volts through a pony and suddenly their mommy not hugging them enough as a foal or the times they wet their bed don't matter."

Twilight and the others stared at her. She stood straight, daring them to contradict her. To revile her. To hate her.

"I love you."

Tempest looked down in shock. Twilight stared up at her. "You what?"

"I love you. I am in love with you. My heart is yours."

"Even after…"

"Especially after." Twilight leaned up and kissed her again. Tempest felt her legs wobble and she fell to her knees. Twilight smiled down at her. her face was blurred by the tears in Tempest's eyes. "I couldn't respond, but I heard everything you said and did. I would have stopped you."

"I know," she said hoarsely. "And maybe next time, you'll have to try. I won't be easy to stop."

"I'll still try." She pressed her head to Tempest's, her horn touching the broken tip of the other pony's. A heart shaped lightning bolt appeared between them. Purple and white mixed together.

"You'd do better not to put me in a position where I feel I have to act."

"I'll try," Twilight promised.

"Good, because I am never letting you out of my sight again when danger looms. I'll do anything to protect you. So from now on anyone I hurt is on you."

Rainbow Dash stepped forward, angry if still shaky. "Hey, you can't put that on her."

"Yes she can," Twilight said.

"What?"

"If princess Celestia ordered my brother when he was a guard to attack someone and spear them, he'd do it. If someone attacked her he would stop them. Either way it would be on her, not him. He's just doing what he was supposed to. Celestia could stay in a tiny room with no outside contact. Every time she chooses not to, whatever happens is on her. And the same applies to me if I make a friend and then put myself in danger."

Fluttershy said, "I get it. It's why I don't spend every day in my closet."

"Ya gotta take a risk," Applejack said.

"And if you love someone, you have to sacrifice yourself for them," Starlight said. "Something a real friend keeps in mind. It may be something you have to do, but…"

They were interrupted as the three previously frozen ponies clopped over. "What… what happened?"

Before the ponies could answer the dam shifted under them and there was a crack like thunder. Without the wendigos the air was warming quickly. Tempest's fight had done a lot of damage too. They all looked over the edge at the large crack. Water was beginning to shoot out of it.

"Run!" Pinkie Pie screeched. All the ponies got to their feet and hoofed it out of there. They made it off the dam just as the crack began to spread and iceberg sized chunks began to fall off. Soon a waterfall was flowing into the forest, washing away the ice and snow.

"What did you do to our dam?" One of them cried.

"I'll sue!" Said another.

"How dare you? You ponies are always causing trouble."

Tempest glared at them and growled in her throat. She took a step forward and they fell back. Twilight held out a leg against her chest and stopped her. "Please, let me handle this."

Smiling playfully Tempest bowed. "Yes, princess."

Standing up Twilight walked gingerly over to them. "Now I understand that you've had problems with some of my friends. Conflicts in which you lost. I apologize for that even if it was unavoidable. I can only ask that you forgive us and please, try not to dwell on the past."

"That's not good enough," the mare said and the other two nodded.

"It'll have to be. As princess of friendship I just want to find an amicable way for us to get over our differences so that nothing like this happens again. If you ask for my help I would be happy to find a way that we can all be happy and go on with our lives." Suddenly her eyes narrowed and her voice turned hard. "Because if you threaten my friends again out of your petty jealousies or put them in danger because of it, I'll see if maybe you all wouldn't be happier transformed into frogs and dumped in a pond!" Her horn flared and suddenly a rock to their left turned into a large surprised looking frog.

All three gulped and watched it hop away. Even Twilight's friends seemed shocked. Tempest just smiled and nodded approvingly. "I'd listen to her. Believe me, that's the soft option." She kicked out and turned another rock to gravel with one kick. The other ponies moved behind Twilight, glaring and clearly ready to back her up.

"Uh… we'd like to try it your way princess," one of them squeaked.

Twilight went back to smiling cutely. "Very well. Spike, arrange an appointment for them for tomorrow. You three can come to my castle and we can talk over lunch."

"Yes ma'am," the chorused unhappily. As the group turned and began to walk back through the muddy forest towards home they fell back, but not too far as things began to move through the trees again.

"That was scary Twilight," Spike said. "I've never seen you threaten someone like that before."

"I've never had to before," Twilight said.

"I know I'm the new pony here," Tempest said, "And the last regime I stood under wasn't exactly a good example, but sometimes being in power means using that power."

Starlight said, "When you are in charge and make decisions for other ponies, you have to be able to enforce those decisions."

Rarity said, "It's like when Sweetiebelle was younger and would try to play with my sewing things. She didn't understand how dangerous needles an scissors were, so if I was not strict with her she could have easily hurt herself."

"Applebloom once almost broke her neck trying to mimic me and Big Mac when we were bucking apple trees even though we told her she was too young. She did it and instead of an apple a branch broke off and almost crushed her. She didn't even understand why we punished her."

"But they aren't little kids," Spike said.

"That is debatable," Tempest said, glancing back at them.

"Should I have handled it another way?" Twilight asked.

He considered. "I don't know. It just… doesn't seem like you."

"I'll make sure it doesn't' become my go-to move," Twilight said. "But someone once told me I needed to grow up." She glanced at Tempest. As they walked she moved closer, leaning against the taller pony. "Besides, it's better than turning them to stone or banished to the moon for a thousand years, right?"

000

They arrived back in town in time to meet the search party. Celestia, Luna, and even Cadence and Shining Armor had all shown up to help and were relieved as they saw the ponies step out of the trees. Twilight went forward and told them what happened. The three ponies responsible shrank under the glare of the other princesses.

"I think you are being a bit lenient," Celestia said, making sure they heard. "But it is your decision Twilight. And we will support it."

"I only hope that the wendigos have gone for a while if not for good," Luna said.

"I don't think they'll be in the mood to tangle with Fizzlepop Berrytwist again any time soon."

Cadence said, "Fizzlepop, thank you for saving my sister in law and her friends. These ponies are important to so many of us and it is no exaggeration to say that by saving them you have saved all of Equestria."

Tempest bowed to the others. "You do not need to thank me. As I told Twilight, I will never let anyone hurt my princess."

The pink alicorn looked between her and Twilight and gave her sister-in-law a look. Shining Armor held back a grin too. Twilight blushed, but refused to look away. "That is good to know. We'll be sending you medal and know that on general principle when someone saves the world, we tend to let them out of paying their taxes."

"Thank you, your majesty. I hope I can prove worthy of the honor. I'm afraid that while I may be better than I was, I still have a few issues to work through."

Luna stepped forward and said, "Believe me, I understand and can promise that you are in the best of company. If you need to talk to someone who understands…" And she nodded to Starlight too. "Feel free to contact me."

Rising Tempest looked proudly over at Twilight. "It seems princess that finding an understanding ear around my princess is not going to be an issue."

Luna smiled brightly. "I suppose not."

"Hey since everyone's here," Pinkie said. "Now would be a great time for Fizzlepop's welcome party combined with a cuteseniara!" From nowhere she produced her party canon. One loud blinding boom later the whole area was changed, filled with streamers, balloons, and tables full of food. All the ponies cheered.

Tempest blinked in shock. "How did she do that?"

"If you figure it out, let us know," Twilight said. "Wasn't it you who said that the party never stops around here?" She whispered. "Also careful of the punch. When I was welcomed to Ponyville Pinkie spiked it was hot sauce."

"Really?" She pranced over to a nearby punch bowl and took a sip from the ladle. She paused for a moment and then burped, a small flame jumping out of her mouth. "Yum."

"Nice one," Spike said approvingly.

The crusaders showed up a short time later and noticed Tempest's cutie mark. Scootaloo said, "Aw, you got it without us."

"No, you helped a lot. It was just like you said." She looked over at Twilight. "I just needed to figure out what I really cared about and wanted to do with my life."

Author's Note

I don't know if Tempest will even appear in the show at this point. I also don't know if any of the mane six will ever get a love interest in this series. (Gods, I hate Timber Spruce in Equestria Girls. Just as Sunset was getting somewhere with the human Twilight… gah! Butt chin buts in!) I don't even know what cutie mark she has if any. What I do know is that at the end of the movie Twilight and Tempest were doing that nervous looking away thing two people in love do in movies and Twilight has done every time it's implied she liked a guy. That they had saved each other's lives. Had found a way to trust each other. And frankly I think if Tempest had been a guy the creators would have already had them fall in love and that it would have sucked compared to Tempest, as she is, falling in love with Twilight. Heck, they even have the same initials. (Tempest Shadow anyway. Fizzlepop Berrytwist is just adorable… and a little naughty if you think of it the right way.) I keep picturing her as Twilight's girlfriend and possibly bodyguard (an fan art online proves I'm not the only one)… after all the other princesses all have guards and frankly a lot more ponies and monsters are after Twilight and her friends. An ex-music producer, a changeling queen, angry fashion pony, restaurant critic, former casino owner, and a bunch of other ponies they have taken down and not destroyed or made friends with yet. Also she hasn't faced off with the wendigos yet, but they keep bringing it up.

It's not as if there are no cartoons with lesbian characters. There are a few definite maybes among the ponies. Lyra and Bonbon/Sweetiedrops. DJ and Octavia (heck, they live together). The fact that in Equestria Girls the six most popular girls in school took a limo to the dance together and only Twilight and Rarity had dates with boys… and one of those was Spike. (Human Rarity seems a lot more open to the relationship. Luna's guards and Discord kind of prove dragons and ponies can breed.) I think we'd all like to see at least one of the mane six get a girlfriend. Maybe not full on making out, but one quick kiss and an "I love you Fizzlepop" would go a long way.

As it stands they just came out with the movie and finished Season seven. I don't know what they've got planned for season 8 or if Fizzlepop will even be in it as a background pony let alone a main character. I just really liked the idea of her being twilight's girlfriend. They really seemed to hit it off in the last half hour of the movie.

So tell me how I did with this and my other fics in a review. And if you like it keep in mind that I have many books available on Amazon.


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